Amritsar Liquor Tragedy is Just the Tip of a Wider and Worsening Tragedy of Alcohol Related Deaths in India

While the tragic death of about 23 persons in Amritsar district of Punjab and the serious condition of several others has understandably evoked a lot of concern, this must be seen as only a partial although very tragic reflection of a much wider and steadily worsening multi-dimensional tragedy of alcohol related deaths, ailments and social disruption in India.

The total number of alcohol related deaths in India in a year was estimated by the WHO to be around 260,000 (2.6 lakh) in 2018. This excludes some kinds of liquor related deaths which can be quite high. What is more, the number must have increased considerably since then as alcohol consumption has been steadily increasing since then. Taking a very conservative estimate, or rather under-estimate, of about 3.6 lakh deaths in a year now in India (compared to 26 lakh alcohol related deaths annually in world), in India about 30,000 people die in a month, about 1,000 in a day and 42 die every hour due to alcohol consumption related factors.

Hence while the problem of spurious liquor deaths is certainly serious, the overall tragedy of increasing alcohol related deaths is a much, much bigger problem. What is more alcohol causes much more domestic violence and all forms of violence as well as family and social disruption compared to any other intoxicant, legal or illegal. The bigger, wider aspects of the alcohol problem are often neglected as very powerful interests are linked to the fast increasing alcohol consumption. As the latest available (2025) data (from IWSR—international wine and spirits records) indicate, unlike several other leading liquor consuming countries which are reducing their consumption of alcohol due to health campaigns and other factors, India is among those countries where alcohol consumption is increasing at a fast pace. One of the main reasons for this is that very healthy social traditions which discouraged liquor consumption are being allowed to die, and instead a very wrong version of modern living, which includes not just overemphasis on consumerism but also on instant gratification including that based on substance abuse is being promoted. In some Punjabi and Bhojpuri songs one can see shocking celebration of alcoholism.  The problem is particularly huge and increasing in some states including Punjab. What is more when governments embark on nasha mukti or campaigns against intoxication they focus mainly on  addiction to illegal drugs and supply side of these drugs and leave out alcohol, even though the number of deaths, domestic violence and social disruption caused by legally available liquor is the highest. Despite this the same governments which claim to be carrying out nasha mukti go on opening more and more liquor vends in villages, something which is opposed strongly by women but they find themselves helpless in most situations although at some places they have been coming forward to oppose these vends and at times have succeeded in driving these away.

In my small way I have been carrying out a campaign in many places and our approach is that we try to create conditions in which people are encouraged to give up all kinds of intoxicants, including various forms of liquor and tobacco and various drugs. Almost everywhere when I have spoken, the response of villagers particularly women has been very good and they ask that this effort should continue.

The increasing tragedy of liquor consumption is also related to those who seek to derive excessive legal and illegal profits from the manufacture and sale of liquor (again including illegal and legal liquor). Since this is seldom admitted at the official level, it is important to hear what a very senior retired official of Punjab had to say on this issue soon after the Amritsar tragedy.

Former Chief Secretary of Punjab Suresh Kumar has written an article published in The Tribune on 16 May in which he has stated, “One of the most formidable barriers to reform is the monopolization of Punjab’s liquor trade. Over the past decade, a handful of persons—many linked to both ruling and opposition parties –have cornered the right to liquor manufacturing and distribution. These monopolies, solidified through opaque auctions and manipulated licensing processes, stifle competition and accountability. In many districts the police serve less as enforcers of the law and more as protectors of the liquor empire. Excise inspectors, often silenced by fear or complicity, remain ineffectual. Even honest officials find themselves powerless within a system fortified by money, muscle and political influence.”

Further this review by a well-informed senior official states, “The tragedy is exacerbated by warped economic incentives. Punjab rakes in over Rs. 10,000 crore (1 crore=10million) annually through liquor excise, making it the state’s second largest source of non-debt revenue. This fiscal dependency breeds a wilful blindness. When both legal and illegal profits flow upward through the same shadowy networks, the state becomes a silent accomplice in the slow poisoning of its people.”

Bharat Dogra is Honorary Convener, Campaign to Save Earth Now. His recent books include Man over Machine—Gandhian Path to Peace, Protecting Earth for Children, A Day in 2071 and Planet in Peril.